EAST Vision Building Workshop April 13

The Arkansas Department of Education (ADE) and the Environmental and Spatial Technology (EAST) Initiative are pleased to announce a Vision Building Workshop for Arkansas schools considering implementation of an EAST program.

The workshop will be held Wednesday, April 13, 2016, at the EAST Initiative offices (6215 Ranch Drive, Little Rock, AR) from 1:00 PM until 4:00 PM. This is the final Vision Building Workshop for the 2015-2016 recruiting year.

The Vision Building Workshop is a chance to get an overview of the Initiative and a chance to see EAST students and projects face-to-face. Matt Dozier, president and CEO of the EAST Initiative, will present the EAST model, and representatives from the Arkansas Department of Education will be on hand to answer questions about this year’s opportunities for start-up funding. Additionally, EAST students from the area will share projects and their reflections of the EAST program. This workshop is the best opportunity for prospective EAST schools to see, hear, ask questions, and experience EAST in action. This is the time for local teams to seriously begin the process that leads to local school adoption of the EAST model in the local community. It is a required activity for the Arkansas Department of Education Grant Program.

Experience has taught that the EAST programs that see the greatest success are the ones started with the strongest foundation of local support. Therefore, it is recommended a team made up of at least five people from different areas of the educational community attend the meeting. Team members should ideally include a district level administrator, a building level administrator, a counselor (or whoever schedules students for classes) and a teacher representative. Additionally, it is recommended team members bring representatives from other community groups that support the local school, if possible (parents, school board members, interested members of the business community, district technology staff, curriculum coordinators, etc.).

Please contact Melanie Bradford, Division Leader of Research and Technology for the Arkansas Department of Education, (melanie.bradford@arkansas.gov) or Tami Baker, Program Coordinator for the EAST Initative, (tami@eaststaff.org) if your local district plans to attend.